WHY DO WE PICK ON POLICEMEN AND TEACHERS?

WHY DO WE PICK ON POLICEMEN AND TEACHERS?

Very often, if we read a news story, the central figure in the story is usually just identified by name. Unless you are a policeman or a teacher. If a teacher or police officer might be caught for a DUI offence, the name and profession of the individual is highlighted. Why do we pick on these two professions in particular?

Police officer Joe Blow was stopped for driving with a breath alcohol reading of over .08, the standard for excessive drinking. Or Calgary primary school teacher Jane Jones was sentenced to community service for failing to stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk. What does their profession have to do with the news story? Have you ever seen a headline such as, “Dentist Dr Tartar, was sentenced to a month’s probation for failing to yield in a school zone.” Or, newscaster Billy Babble was charged with failing to remove the snow from his sidewalk for the fifth time.

For some reason, teachers and police officers, have been singled out by the media to be held to a higher standard of behaviour than the average citizen. In daily life, teachers are often the target of public criticism for doing little work and having long holidays and police are often disdainfully referred to as pigs. But when it comes to them acting in ways that are commonplace to the rest of the population, they are singled out for criticism.

Did you hear where six police officers having coffee in a US Starbucks, were asked to leave, by the barista, as their presence was making one of the customers nervous. It’s true! On the other hand, I bet you didn’t hear of the three policemen who paid for the shoplifted food in the bag of a poor women who was penniless and was hungry? We use very different standards for reporting news when we know the profession of the news makers! Report the bad and ignore the good.

If the offence committed by either group is related to their job responsibilities then identifying their profession is fair game. If a teacher might inappropriately strike a child, their teacher status is relevant and should be identified. If a police officer uses excessive force in shoving an arrested person into a squad car, it should be reported as well. Priests should be identified if they violate a child, but we do not need to highlight anyone’s social position if they violate a non smoking bylaw.

I am just assuming that the media believes that identifying the profession in a news item will help sell more newspapers or attract more viewers. That is the primary reason for singling out my fellow teacher friends or my police neighbours. It is not really fair, but there is little that I can do to prevent it. I wouldn’t want to read a headline the reads, “Former Calgary Catholic school principal slams the media for biased and sensationalized reporting!”